Fatal Insomnia
by Constellations101
Summary: Sasuke has Fatal Familial Insomnia. Death is inevitable but he doesn't want Naruto to know.


**Fatal Insomnia**

"I'm sorry, but you have been diagnosed with Fatal Familial Insomnia."

"What is that supposed to mean?" A slightly worried Kakashi directed his attention from the orange book, in his hand, to Lady Tsunade.

"Fatal Familial Insomnia involves progressively worsening insomnia. There are four stages observed within a person diagnosed with Fatal Familial Insomnia. The first stage is where the person suffers increasing insomnia which results in panic attacks, paranoia, and phobia. The second stage is where the hallucinations and panic attacks become noticeable. The third stage is where the individual is not able to sleep at all. This is followed by rapids weight loss. The fourth and final stage is where the individual experiences dementia. Sasuke, right now you are nearing the second stage."

"Now people actually have a good reason to believe that I'm a mental case that deserves to be imprisoned in an asylum." Sasuke muttered darkly under his breath.

"Sasuke there is something else you should know." Tsunade said warily before gaining a more professional tone. "Individuals who are diagnosed with Fatal Familial Insomnia die between seven and thirty-six months. Unfortunately, there is no...cure yet."

A pregnant pause followed Tsunade's dismal words. Tsunade avoided the shocked states of the other two occupants. She left the room when she felt the tension too stifling.

"Sasuke...?" Kakashi asked hesitantly. As Sasuke's current guardian, Kakashi felt a sense of responsibility for providing his former student with the care and protection demanded by Sasuke's well-being.

Kakashi reached out a hand in a feeble attempt of comfort, to grasp Sasuke's shoulder. However, when Kakashi's hand briefly made contact with Sasuke's shoulder, Sasuke flinched and got up to leave.

Sasuke paused at the door. "Don't tell anyone about this. Especially Naruto." His voice was bland and empty; as though he had not fully comprehended the situation.

The door shut silently while,at the same time, a single year let loose from Kakashi's hidden eye. He closed his eyes and thought to himself:

_He is only seventeen._

* * *

Naruto was racing towards the training grounds. Sasuke was finally allowed full use of his chakra after being on probation for two years. When Naruto arrived at the training signs he was greeted with the sight of Sasuke slumped beside a tree with his head in his arms. That was not what caused Naruto to be alarmed. It was the fact that he had yet to take notice of Naruto.

"Hey Sasuke." He roughly shook Sasuke in an attempt to ease him out of his slumber.

"Naruto...?" Sasuke raised his head from his arms.

"You look like shit, teme." Naruto hadn't seen Sasuke in two months except for the occasional chance meetings on the streets. Tsunade had kept him busy with missions. However, with every mission he was assigned, the nagging feeling that Tsunade was concealing something from him grew stronger. He vaguely wondered if it had something to so with Sasuke before berating himself for thinking such ludicrous things.

"By the time I'm done with you, you will be the one looking like shit, dobe."

Naruto grinned. His worries vanquished to the back of is mind while he engaged himself in the thrill of the battle."

Naruto and Sasuke ran towards each other. Naruto had his rasengan while Sasuke had his chidori.

_"There is no value in killing the likes of you..."_

Sasuke suddenly swerved around Naruto. His momentum caused him to plummet into a tree.

"Sasuke are you okay?" Naruto asked. Naruto has been surprised by Sasuke's maneuver but had, fortunately, been able to put an end to his attack.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I thought I saw someone hiding in the tree."

Naruto looked unconvinced. "I think we should put an end to this training session. We can do this some other time."

Sasuke grit his teeth painfully. "I said I'm fine. You're just overreacting, Usuaratonkachi."

"Look I know when I'm overreacting and, right now, I'm not. You look like you haven't slept in months. You have bruises under your eyes and you're more paler than usual. Your skin looks sickly and your hair has lost its usual sheen."

_"If you want to kill me...curse me! Hate me! And live a long and unsightly life..."_

Sasuke was shaking visibly. His bangs covered his eyes and his hands were clenched into fists. Naruto could practically feel the inner battle Sasuke was having with himself. When Sasuke spoke next, his voice was deliberate and slow; laced with a hint of exhaustion.

"I said I'm fine. Now fight me, you coward."

_"Run away...run away...and cling to life."_

"Sasuke, I don't..." Before Naruto could finish his sentence, Sasuke had taken the fighting stance; his hands raised and his legs bent and slightly apart.

Their eyes met briefly and Naruto felt like Sasuke was looking through him and not at him.

"I'll kill you, you bastard!" Sasuke roared.

Naruto got ready to fight the slightly deranged Sasuke. But before either boys could initiate their attack, Kakashi appeared.

Kakashi was livid. "Sasuke, go back to the apartment now."

"No."

Kakashi eyes narrowed in anger. "Naruto, I need to speak to Sasuke alone."

"But..." Naruto's curiosity was causing him to disrespect his former sensei.

"Naruto go." Kakashi exclaimed sternly before adding in a softer yet tired tone, "I'll explain...later."

The silence between them stretched long after Naruto had left. Sasuke had somewhat calmed down and was currently gazing at the floor while Kakashi's eye was staring blankly at the sky in a rare sign of defeat.

"You promised you wouldn't tell." Sasuke said in an accusatory tone.

Kakashi sighed and suddenly he felt older than his current age. " I won't tell him anything about your...problem."

"You're going to lie to him." Sasuke questioned.

Kakashi ignored the guilt coursing through his body at the thought of evading the promise he made to Naruto.

Kakashi ran a hand through his hair and suddenly he felt heavy. As though he finally realized the weight he was carrying on his shoulders.

"I don't know what to say to you anymore, Sasuke. Last time I tried to talk to you, you still walked away. I keep feeling like I've failed you."

A pregnant pause echoed between the two occupants.

"I don't know what to say to you anymore. But please, I can't believe I have been reduced to begging my own student, please don't put any unnecessary strain on your body. That is all I can say; I'm too tired to deal with this...with you." Kakashi said monotonously before leaving the clearing.

Sasuke felt heavy. Something as simple as standing became too difficult. He felt exhausted. His legs felt weak and before he could stop himself, he collapsed. His eyes were getting heavier by the minute and it was a challenge to keep them open. His mind begged him to allow sleep to consume him.

But try as he might, Sasuke couldn't sleep.

* * *

Kakashi found Sasuke, during the night, in the same position he had left him in. He was gazing, absent-mindedly, at the stars.

"Come on. Let's go home." Kakashi extended his arm to Sasuke.

"I don't have a home." Sasuke stated in a dejected tone before accepting Kakashi's arm.

Kakashi was surprised that he was easily able to pull Sasuke up. It was almost like pulling a sack of potatoes. He looked at Sasuke carefully and was able to see the signs of apparent weight loss.

His clothes no longer fit him but hung loosely on his too skinny frame. Kakashi could see the bones in his arms and legs clearly and his face had a sunken appearance to it. He had vaguely registered the fact that Sasuke seemed to be barely eating, preferring to skip meals, but hadn't thought to do anything about it.

The duo walked back to Kakashi's apartment in awkward silence.

"Are you hungry, Sasuke?" Kakashi questioned.

"No." Sasuke replied blandly.

"Well then here you go. Enjoy." Kakashi placed a plate of rice and tomatoes in front of Sasuke.

"What part of no don't you understand what you meant by no. But I don't really care. I was just asking to be polite."

Sasuke angrily stabbed a tomato with a fork and glares intensely at it before placing it in his mouth. He did nor particularly want a repeat of what happened earlier today so he decided to comply with Kakashi's wishes in order to prevent any possible upcoming rows.

"Sasuke its been an hour and you have only finished half your bowl." Kakashi stated with mild amusement.

"Why do you care." Sasuke snapped indignantly. "Now you have all the time in the world to finish those lecherous books you call literature."

Kakashi chuckled. "Literature is learning about life. These books," he pointed at the orange book he was currently reading, "teach you the important stuff in life."

"So after this, it's straight off to bed." Kakashi said.

"Why, do you need to practise the life lessons you learnt from the book."

"I would but I have a minor under my roof."

Sasuke snorted. "Like that would actually stop you."

"I'm a firm believer in rules." Kakashi replied airily.

Sasuke finished his food and the duo went to their respective rooms.

"Try to get some shut eye today, Sasuke." Kakashi said in a soft tone.

"I'm not making any promises." Sasuke replied gruffly.

Sasuke lay down in his bed without changing his clothes. True to his works, he tried to sleep but found that he couldn't. He had been reduced to counting stars from the window in hopes to fall asleep.

Sasuke did not know if his mind was aging tricks on him or not but he found that some of the stars resembled Naruto, some resembled Kakashi, while others resembled Itachi and various members of his clan that he had been close to in his childhood.

"Sasuke it's all your fault. You left me and now I must pay the price for your betrayal. I hate you." Blood was gushing out of a wound on Naruto's head. His eyes were glazed over with fury and loathing was evident in his voice.

"No, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you suffer." Sasuke begged pitifully.

"My own son resorting to begging. How pitiful! You have disgraced the Uchiha clan." Fugaku Uchiha bellowed.

"Foolish little brother" Itachi said in his usual calm tone laced with slight bitterness.

"You didn't save us. It's your fault we are dead. Your fault you're weak." The clan members were covered head to toe in blood.

The sight of the decapitated limbs and the stench of the rotting flesh coupled with the shrill screeches of the people before him was making Sasuke light-headed.

"It's all your fault."

"Foolish little brother."

"Why can't you be more like Itachi."

"You are a disgrace. You are not worthy of the Uchiha name."

"You are weak."

"It's your fault we are dead."

"Look at him. It's all his fault."

"It's all your fault."

"It's all your fault."

"It's all your fault."

The insults were reverberating throughout the darkening night. The cold seeping through his pores while the darkness visibly increased in density. Sasuke could taste the bitter tang of despair oozing from them. He could smell the rancid stench of death.

"No. No. No. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. It's all my fault." Sasuke clapped his hands over his ears in a feeble attempt to block everything out.

Kakashi stormed into Sasuke's room when he heard Sasuke screaming. When he entered, all he could do was stare at the pitiful sight.

Sasuke was rolled up in a ball. He had his eyes shut and his hands clenched over his ears painfully. He was trembling uncontrollably. Kakashi was jerked back to reality by the almost silent snivelling emitted from Sasuke.

"Sasuke you are hallucinating."

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry." Sasuke sobbed softly.

Kakashi shook Sasuke's shoulder violently. "You are hallucinating Sasuke."

Sasuke went ballistic. Sasuke's body thrashed wildly. "It's my fault! It's my fault! I'm sorry!"

Kakashi grabbed the jug of water on the bedside table and threw the water at Sasuke's face.

Sasuke's eyes snapped open. His heart reverberating wildly in his rib cage. When he registered Kakashi standing over him with a concerned expression, he forced his body to ease the erratic behaviour it was displaying.

"How are you feeling?" Kakashi questioned.

"Fines." Sasuke muttered irritably.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Kakashi asked, referring to the hallucinations.

Sasuke shook his head. He was still shaking and his eyes were sharply roaming the room furtively as a defence mechanism.

Kakashi sighed. He walked out the room but before he could close the door, Sasuke spoke.

"Wait."

Kakashi paused and waited for Sasuke to continue.

"I know I've disappointed you. I know you think of me as a failure. But I want you to know that I listened to everything you said and I understood everything you said but I still made that stupid mistake because I didn't want to believe you were right. I wanted to prove you wrong. I guess I want to say...I'm sorry and...you were always a father figure to me even when I was blinded by anger."

Kakashi walked over to Sasuke and placed his hand over Sasuke's hand in a display of comfort. "I understand and thank you."

Nothing more was needed to be said.

* * *

"Sasuke, do you want to go to Ichiraku with me. I'm really hungry for ramen." Naruto knew that the old Sasuke would have given a retort to his statement or replied with his trademark smirk. But the new Sasuke barely responded to anything he said. He had, initially thought that Sasuke was giving him the silent treatment but he had seen Sasuke treat others in the village in a similar fashion.

Sasuke just stared at him blankly for a few seconds before looking at his surroundings.

"What are you looking at, Sasuke?" Naruto asked in slight hope in garnering a response from the mute boy.

Sasuke looked at him, puzzled. He directed his gaze to the sky and seemed to be in a trance as he looked at the clouds. He directed his gaze back to Naruto and then looked back at the sky in silent contemplation.

"It's a sky." Naruto said for unknown reasons.

Sasuke stared at Naruto in confusion before turning around and walking away.

Leaving Naruto behind once again.

Naruto stared at the retreating back of his rival, brother, and best friend. He knew that Sasuke was leaving him again. However, this time...

_Naruto didn't have the energy to run after Sasuke._

_He was exhausted._

* * *

Kakashi found Sasuke in the Uchiha compound. Sasuke was standing in the middle of the deserted compound, staring at the sky in contemplation.

"Sasuke..." Kakashi questions hesitantly.

Sasuke didn't look at him. He pointed to the sky.

"Yes that's the sky. Come on let's go. It's getting late." He grabbed Sasuke's hand in his own and lead the way. Sasuke followed without complaint, still staring at the sky in contemplation.

When they got home, Kakashi tried to get Sasuke to open his mouth so that he could feed him because he was no longer capable of feeding himself. He did not respond to Kakashi's efforts. He just stared at the sky through the window. Kakashi eventually gave up.  
And for the first time since attending his father's funeral, Kakashi broke down and cried. He wished he could have saved Sasuke from this fate...

_Because in less than six months, Sasuke will leave._

_And no one will be able to bring him back this time._

_He is just seventeen._

* * *

Sasuke was walking through the forest. He heard a woman's voice, beckoning him into the forest. The woman's voice sounded earthly and had a deep reverberating tingle to it that sounded pleasant and soothing to the ears.

Sasuke did not know why he was following the voice of an incognito woman. He just felt an inexplicable desire to be with this woman. Hence, the reason he had got up from, where he was gazing at the sky, in the middle of the night.

Sasuke followed the voice to a clearing. The woman had her back to him but Sasuke had a feeling that he recognized her.

The two stood in silence for several minutes. The woman was singing softly but beautifully. The woman turned and Sasuke felt a burst of warmth flow through him.

"Sasuke." The woman echoed in her unearthly tone.

"Mother." Tears welled up in Sasuke's eyes. He had the sudden urge to run up to her and embrace her like he did when he was a kid. He would tell her about his day and all his worries and she would ruffle his hair and congratulate him or soothe his worries, depending on the situation.

All of a sudden, Sasuke's mother stArted screaming. He head split open and blood started gushing out. Lacerations were appearing simultaneously all over her body, the thick blood oozing out of the wounds and creating a river. Her eyes were pearly white and her shrill cries were occasionally emitted in a garbled manner due to the blood seeping into her mouth.

"Look what you did. Look at what you did. You will pay for this!" His mother scree bed ominously.

Zombie-like creatures erupted from the ground beneath the two occupants. Their skin was shrivelled and bathed in grime and filth. Their hands were outstretched, making the sharp, visible fingernails prominent in the frail light provided from the crescent moon. The stench of rotting flesh filled the air. The pungent smell filled Sasuke's sinuses, making it difficult for him to breathe. His eyes were watery and he took huge gulps of air fervently despite the pain that erupted in his throat from this action.

The zombie-like creatures dragged their feet, across the rough ground, towards Sasuke. Their bright yellow eyes boring blankly at nothing in particular. They reached Sasuke and suddenly their hands were filled with whips blazing with the scorching heat of blue fire. They beat their whips across Sasuke while more rose from the ground. Sasuke was surrounded by these creatures, all fighting each other to leave their mark on Sasuke.

The sound of whips striking bare skin repeatedly created the never ending chorus throughout the silent night. Sasuke was reduced to screaming and and crying in agony. He could feel the pain blazing throughout his body.

"Sasuke...?" Neji appeared in the clearing. He had been on night patrol when he heard the screaming and decided to investigate the noise.

He pondered the reasons as to why the proud Uchiha had been reduced to a snivelling state. He observed Sasuke's body convulsing and his limbs flailing erratically in the air. Sobs permeated his throats in hoarse whispers and his screaming had begun to seize due to the strain being put on his body.

Neji was confused in regards to Sasuke's peculiar behaviour. He thought it best to not startle Sasuke while he was in this critical condition. He departed the clearing to get help.

After Neji had left, Sasuke became aware of the fact that he was vomiting blood. He clasped his hands over his mouth but that did not quell the flow of blood purging from his mouth. He stared in horror at his blood and, for the first time, realized...

_He was battling the demons of his imagination._

_He thought he was defending himself..._

_Even thought no one was there._

_Sasuke was alone._

* * *

Naruto was walking through the village with no destination in mind. He remembered Sasuke telling him that he enjoys walking because it helps clear his thoughts and, thus, think in a coherent manner. Although, Naruto found this method pointless since it did not help diminish his worries regarding his best friend. He knew something was wrong, he just didn't know what.

He decided to confide his worries in Shikamaru since confiding in someone else had always helped Naruto clear his head and think somewhat efficiently.

Naruto found Shikamaru helping his mother perform 'troublesome' chores.

"Hey, Shikamaru, I was wondering if you knew what is going on with Sasuke." Naruto asked somewhat apprehensively.

"Oh, don't you know that he has fatal insomnia."

Naruto's stomach sank at those words. He felt queasy and light-headed. That did not sound good, even to him.

"What's that and how do you know?" Naruto questioned.

"Ino overheard Lady Tsunade talking about it to Kakashi-san. It basically means Sasuke is not able to sleep at all."

Naruto stared at him in shock. "No wonder he looks terrible all the time."

The two lapsed into a comfortable silence that only lasted momentarily.

"Wait. If Sasuke can't sleep, doesn't that mean he is going to die." Naruto questioned, praying to God that he was being paranoid.

"Yes it does." Shikamaru said softly. "He's been in this condition for five months. I'm sorry Naruto, but he's going to die soon."

"No! You're lying! Shut up, you bastard!" Naruto drew his hand, pulled into a fist, and lobbed it across Shikamaru's cheek. He then flees the scene in shame, guilt, and anguish.

Shikamaru stared at Naruto's retreating figure before gently touching his bruise which was turning a sickly paste of yellow.

"I'm sorry...Naruto...Sasuke." Shikamaru whispered into the night. All that answered him was the whispering melody of the trees and the tears of the gentle breeze.

_It was raining._

* * *

Naruto was running faster than he had ever ran in his life. He had no clear destination in mind. He just wanted the pain to stop squeezing his heart. The pain that was scorching through his blood in an endless torrent of despair, anguish and loneliness. He just wanted it all to stop.

Eventually, Naruto found himself at Kakashi's doorstep. He pounded his fists chaotically on Kakashi's door at the same time that the ANBU arrived.

Before Kakashi could say anything, Naruto had started screaming at his former sensei.

"How come you never told me! I have a right to know!" Suddenly , Naruto's knees gave out and crashed to the hard wooden floor. He started crying loudly. "He was my best friend...my brother."

One of the ANBU grew tired of the scene playing out before him. He stepped forward to deliver his message.

"Lady Tsunade wishes to inform you that Uchiha Sasuke of the Uchiha clan is dead. She requests your presence in her office immediately."

Kakashi's body becomes rigid. He immediately follows the ANBU.

Naruto stared at the rain that was slowly becoming a downpour. He was soaked wet. However, he did not register these things. His mind had become numb and his body impervious to it's surroundings.  
He watched at the two boys giggling as they ran, through the sloppy mud, to get home. He watched mothers greeting their children as they arrived home due to the unexpected rain. He watched the stray animals trying to take shelter in dingy alleyways. He watched his surroundings inquisitively.

_But the eyes were empty._

* * *

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